This invention relates generally to leak detection systems and more particularly to such systems which electronically isolate the location of water leaks.
The need to detect water leaks at any number of sites is common to public utilities, communications links, warehouses, chemical plants, and many other industries. Warning systems are required to indicate not only the existence of the leaks, but also their location, and the warning arrangement should be as simple as possible for reliability, efficiency, and economy.
In electronic equipment it is sometimes desirable to install electronic warning systems to detect the presence of a liquid resulting from a leak. Signals representing the presence or absence of a liquid at each of several locations are generated and monitored at a central point. Heretofore, systems for discovering and locating leaking fluids have manifested a number of disadvantages. Some systems have employed fluid sensitive switches connected directly to a central monitoring station. In a system employing many elements being monitored, a multiplicity of wires to identify the specific element would be required, making the system unwieldy and costly. Further, an active device requires a power source and the attendant increase of wires.